Beginner Dwarf Jade Questions

TheoM

Hello there,

A month ago, I began what I hope will be a lifelong bonsai hobby. I started with a dwarf jade. I'm a little familiar with the debate as to whether this species is a "real" bonsai or not, but at this point I am not interested in such controversies. I am very interested, however, to make sure that the dwarf jade, which I call Nelson, will survive -- and maybe even thrive, etc.

The internet abounds with tidbits on dwarf-jade care. Almost all of these tidbits assume some prior knowledge, and many, even more confusingly, contradict one another. The one universal comment, luckily, is that these things are easy to care for. But what does that mean?

So here are the basic questions. I hope that someone will be nice enough to answer them and that future beginners will see the Thread and save themselves days of internet searching and head scratching.

My dwarf jade is about 8-10 inches tall, with a trunk just a bit slimmer than a dry-erase marker or a roll of dimes. Its sitting in a pot with glued-on rocks and some moss at the base of the trunk. We're inside, in New York City.

1) how often do I water it? I've heard "every two weeks" and "once a month" and "when it needs it"

2) how do i water it? I've heard "mist it"; I've heard "don't mist it" . Fine. But if I don't mist it, does that mean that I immerse it? Or what?

3) Do i need to get it out of this rocks-glued-on pot? Then what should I put it in?

4) I saw what looked like a dwarf jade last week that was sitting in a pot near the ceiling in a foyer and had a trunk that cascaded to the side and then turned down and dangled all the way to the floor -- some ten feet. Does anyone know how to do that?

5) And cuttings. I took six cuttings just smaller than a pencil. I put three in Miracle Gro Potting Mix two days later, and the other three a week later. I watered one of each with bonsai food; I did nothing at all (no water) to the other four. They've been in for about a month (first batch) and two weeks (second batch), and they have lost most of their leaves. I've pulled them out and I don't see any roots. Should I just wait? And what should I do with the cutting I just took ten minutes ago?

That's all. I hope someone will take the time to help me (and others to come) out with this. I'll get pictures up soon...

Thanks,

Theo

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soonami

1) I would water it less than more, they are succulents, so well adapted to arid climates. I would water only when the surface is dry about 2cm down

2) I would try to avoid getting watter on the leaves, they seem rot or discolor on me when I get them wet

3) Yes, you must get rid of those glued on rocks, they glue dissolves after a while, inhibiting root growth as it gets absorbed into the soild finally killing the tree from underneath. You can replace those rocks glued on with pea gravel or rocks of the same size and appearance but with out glue. The glue functions only to keep the rocks from being displaced in chipping

4) I imagine that to make the branch cascade that way you just train the growth downwards for a little while and after a foot or so gravity would take over, but I have no personal experience with that kind of training. Wiring might be difficult at first but be patient.

5) I have no trouble rooting cuttings in sand and peat, or anthing that is fast draining. My mom has about 25 dwarf jades all from the same mother tree. Each time a leaf or branch falls off that is still green she sticks it in a pot with something else already growing in it. I found about 5 jade plants growing out of my Japanese Maple training pot, that my mom stuck in. I have to say though, terminal stems seem to root the quickest, but leaves seem not to always do great. Also, now , if you live in the Northern hemisphere might not be the best time to strike cuttings, if you wait until early spring you should have a lot better success, unless you can provide adequate indoor conditions to stimulate growth

Good luck with your tree and post some pictures when you get a chance

TheoM

Thanks for that. I'll get rid of the glued-on rocks. but how exactly do I water it, then? do i dump water onto the rocks and stuff below it? or do I submerge the pot upto the top in some water for 15 minutes? Thanks again, Theo